NASA releases new image taken by James Webb Space Telescope

NASA's "James Webb" space telescope has been capturing intriguing photographs beyond our galaxy and its outskirts for over two years now, Azernews reports.

The new stunning photograph sent by the space telescope features galaxies named "The Penguin and The Egg" by astronomers based on their apparent shapes.

The new image depicts two interacting galaxies known as "Arp 142," located 326 million light-years away from Earth. They are about 100,000 light-years apart from each other. Astronomers note that while this may seem very distant, astronomically, it is relatively close. In contrast, our closest major galaxy, "Andromeda," is situated 2.5 million light-years away from the Milky Way.

"The Penguin and The Egg" galaxies underwent their first close encounter in space between 25 to 75 million years ago, according to NASA's statement. This event triggered the formation of a new star in "The Penguin."

The merger of galaxies like these can lead to the formation of hundreds of new stars every year over millions of years. NASA states that studies of "The Penguin" indicate the creation of approximately 100-200 new stars annually. This is significantly more than the six to seven new stars that form annually in our Milky Way galaxy.

Prior to their mutual interaction, "The Penguin" was a spiral galaxy with a circular appearance, whereas "The Egg" is an elliptical galaxy containing older stars.

According to information released by the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, the image also includes the galaxy "PGC 1237172," located approximately 100 million light-years from Earth in the upper right corner. Naturally, there are thousands more galaxies in the background.

Unlike the Hubble Space Telescope, the "James Webb" telescope has 18 individual mirrors, enabling it to observe some of the faintest objects and peer into the universe's earliest eras.